Changing the design of a TAFE for a new normal

By Jason Bamert

The global events of the past 18 months has had significant impacts across our economic and social livelihoods, and the critical role that the Australian TAFE sector will play in our economic response and recovery will be profound.

With industries accelerating their adoption of technology services to automate and digitise their business models there is now a strong focus on an anticipated skills and talent shortage where 59% of the forecasted skills gap in 2027 will be in these ‘digital skills’.

Whilst the focus on funding models and training incentives is understandable, there is an immediate opportunity for TAFE to capitalise on the rapid digitisation that is happening across our economy and act as a platform for our nation’s workforce of the future. This also further opens the door to making TAFE more sustainable and relevant in this period of significant change.

Why does TAFE need to accelerate transformation?

Optus Enterprise, with its partner Cisco, recently commissioned a body of independent research to better understand what was happening at an institute and system level, where the impacts were being most felt and where the opportunities lie for a meaningful and impactful response.

Importantly, the research focussed on the changing nature of TAFE Campus design and the innovation that could drive future models of teaching and training delivery. The data also shows how TAFE can better prepare itself for the future through a roadmap for operationalising digital innovation while still managing capacity and fiscal constraints.

These topics are covered in our recently released report ‘Changing the design of TAFE for a new normal: How Digitisation is Transforming the Training experience, Campus design and TAFE operating Models’. The research was conducted through desktop research, targeted interviews, and a comprehensive online survey that captured responses from five out of Australia’s seven TAFE systems plus stand-alone TAFEs and dual sector institutes.

The report found that to succeed in the ‘new normal’ and reinvigorate the TAFE brand, institutions need to:

1. Make digital an executive-level priority

2. Get the underlying platform in place: robust, scalable, connected and secure

3. Focus on services and applications that make TAFE attractive to all students

4. Embrace and encourage partnerships with Industry, and

5. Think strategically about how to fund digital initiatives in a fiscally constrained environment.

TAFE is unlikely to return to its pre-COVID operational model and more than four out of five TAFE executives believe that COVID-19 has created permanent change in the way TAFE campuses are designed and operated.

TAFE’s strategy is evolving through digital transformation and is now being accelerated to meet the following demands:

· Creating institute resilience and adaptability

· Prioritising safety and security as part of the Campus experience

· Re-designing campuses so they are engaging but efficient to operate

· Building Learning models that are immersible and scalable

· Using innovative models to ensure TAFE boundaries are porous to industry.

How to succeed in the new normal

The report highlights a number of customer case studies across our national TAFE systems where partnerships and collaborations with Optus Enterprise and Cisco are bringing benefit beyond the delivery of technology services and connectivity.

The ability to unlock an eco-system that brings forward research, innovation, technology, skills transfer, thought leadership and global networks are now seen as key differentiators in TAFE’s value proposition.

It is clear executives are now embedding digital into their overarching organisational strategy; ensuring that all systems and infrastructure is digitised, connected and secure, whether it’s a new building, a precinct, a workforce or other major civil works projects.

This has been further supported by our report where some 87% of TAFEs said that the CIO will be a more influential voice in the institutional strategy and 47% said technology companies will become more influential in the design of campuses.

TAFE has an opportunity to play a critical role in our nation’s economic recovery, but it will need to continue to accelerate its digital transformation plans to meet the major shifts that are happening across Campus design, training and student experiences. TAFE will also become essential in facilitating the rise in digital skills needed in our economic workforce.

Australian governments, enterprises and small to medium business are already rapidly changing in response to these newly created business models and demands and the challenge for the TAFE sector is to do the same.

Download the full report below or contact me for more information.